What SAFe-POPM Questions and Answers feature?

The top ten Features are a PI planning input that demonstrates how Product Management plans to accomplish the Vision. The vision is a description of the future state of the solution under development, reflecting customer and stakeholder needs, as well as the features and capabilities proposed to meet those needs1. The top ten Features are the highest priority features of the ART backlog, which are derived from the vision and roadmap, and provide the most value to the customers and stakeholders2. By presenting the top ten Features to the Agile Release Train (ART) during PI planning, Product Management communicates the main objectives and scope of the upcoming Program Increment (PI), and guides the teams to plan their work accordingly2. The top ten Features also help align the teams and stakeholders to a shared mission and vision, and foster cross-team and cross-ART collaboration2.

References: 1 Vision - Scaled Agile Framework, 2 PI Planning - Scaled Agile Framework

Program Increments (PIs) are the unit of time used on Solution Roadmaps, which are visual tools that forecast and communicate the planned deliverables, milestones, and investments over a time horizon12. PIs are fixed-length timeboxes, typically 8 to 12 weeks long, that provide a regular and predictable planning cadence for the Agile Release Trains (ARTs) and Solution Trains3. PIs are used on Solution Roadmaps to:

•Align the solution delivery with the PI objectives, which are the SMART goals that define the expected outcomes and benefits for each ART and Solution Train in a PI3.

•Coordinate the dependencies and interfaces between the ARTs and Solution Trains that contribute to the solution3.

•Provide a near-term forecast of the features and capabilities that will be delivered in the next two to three PIs12.

•Incorporate feedback and learning from the previous PIs and adjust the scope and priority of the work items as needed12.

Some additional information that might be helpful for you are:

•The other options (A, B, and D) are not the unit of time used on Solution Roadmaps, but rather units of time that may be used for other purposes or in other contexts.

•Iterations are fixed-length timeboxes, typically one or two weeks long, that provide a regular and predictable development cadence for the Agile Teams4. Iterations are used to plan, execute, and demo the work items in the Team Backlog4.

•Years are a unit of time that may be used to provide a high-level overview of the roadmap, outlining major milestones, goals, and initiatives that are planned over multiple years2. Years are not used to plan or forecast the solution delivery in detail, as they are too long and uncertain for Agile planning2.

•Days are a unit of time that may be used to estimate the effort or duration of a work item or a task5. Days are not used to schedule or forecast the solution delivery on the roadmap, as they are too granular and variable for Agile planning5.

Capacity allocation is an allocation of work by work item type for an upcoming planning period1. It helps the Agile Teams to balance their investments across different types of backlog items, such as new features, enablers, defects, and technical debt2. One benefit of capacity allocation is that it prevents different types of backlog items from being compared against each other based on their relative value or priority, which can be misleading or subjective3. Instead, capacity allocation allows the teams to focus on delivering value and quality in each work item type, without compromising the other2.

References:

•Capacity Allocation - Scaled Agile Framework

•Team Backlog - Scaled Agile Framework

•How Does SAFe Handle Capacity Planning and Resource Management? - Value Glide